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ECO-DESIGN ART PRIZE
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Eco-design Art Prize
(Prix Art Éco-Conception)
Supporting contemporary artists in reducing their environmental impact
The Eco-Design Art Prize was born from the vision of the Art of Change 21 association to raise awareness within the French art scene of environmental and climate issues. It seeks to guide artists through their ecological transition, empowering them to anticipate and shape the major changes required to adapt to climate change.
Each year, the Eco-Design Art Prize rewards and supports 12 contemporary artists in their journey toward reducing their environmental impact. Over three days at the Palais de Tokyo in Paris, they receive tailored guidance from experts in environmental sustainability, carbon accounting and eco-design, alongside mentorship from artists already committed to an environmental approach. Each laureate is awarded a €1,000 grant.
Organised in partnership with the Palais de Tokyo and supported by the French Ministry of Culture and ADEME, the Prize has already supported 24 winning artists in 2023 and 2024. In 2024, every winner expressed full satisfaction with the support received, affirming that it would positively shape the evolution of their artistic practice.
The rising number of applications – 278 in 2023 and 356 in 2024 – reflects both the growing importance of this initiative and the increasing commitment of artists to environmental responsibility.
The Eco-Design Art Prize is part of Art of Change 21’s broader, long-term mission to drive ecological transition within the cultural sector. This includes the creation of an open-access online resource center, regional support initiatives, the publication of a guide in partnership with ADEME and the development of eco-designed artistic programming.
LAUNCH OF THE THIRD EDITION:
THE ECO-DESIGN 2025 ART PRIZE
In partnership with the Palais de Tokyo, with the support of the French Ministry of Culture and ADEME and the patronage of Maison Ruinart and Foundation LAccolade.
The Art of Change 21 association, in partnership with the Palais de Tokyo, has designed and organised the newest edition of the unique Eco-Design Art Prize.
The prize consists of 3 days of personalised support from environmental, carbon and eco-design experts specialised in art, as well as mentorship from artists committed to an environmental approach and a €1,000 grant.
Key dates:
- Call for entries: February 15 to April 6, 2025
- Award ceremony: April 28, 2025 (by invitation)
- Support sessions for prize winners: April 29, May 26 and 27, 2025
The Jury:
The jury for the 2025 edition is made up of 12 personages from the worlds of art and the environment.
- Clément Delépine, Director of Art Basel Paris
- Guillaume Désanges, President of the Palais de Tokyo
- Catherine Dobler, Founder and Director of the Fondation LAccolade
- Karine Duquesnoy, Senior Civil Servant for Ecological Transition and Sustainable Development at the French Ministry of Culture
- Louise Hayward, Director of the Lisson Gallery, London
- Anna Labouze and Keimis Henni, Directors and founders of Artagon, Directors of Les Magasins Généraux
- Valérie Martin, Head of Mobilisation Citoyenne et Médias at ADEME
- Arnaud Morand, Curator and Art Director of Afalula
- Otobong Nkanga, Artist
- Emmanuel Tibloux, Director of the École des Arts Décoratifs
- Fabien Vallérian, Director of Art and Culture at Maison Ruinart
It is chaired by Alice Audouin, Founding President of Art of Change 21.
The jury selects the 12 winners from 36 finalists chosen by a selection committee composed of members of the Art of Change 21 team and outside experts (such as carbon expert Emmanuelle Paillat).
The patron of the 2025 edition: Otobong Nkanga
The patron of this year’s Eco-Design Art Prize is artist Otobong Nkanga. An internationally renowned artist, Otobong Nkanga uses tapestry, drawing, installation, photography, performance and sculpture to question the major ecological and social issues linked to the exploitation of resources, and to heal an unequal and dilapidated world. Currently exhibiting at MoMA in New York, Otobong Nkanga will have two major solo shows in 2025 – in Dallas as the winner of the Nasher Prize 2025 and in Paris at the Musée d’Art Moderne this autumn. As a jury member and speaker for this edition, Otobong Nkanga will share her insights, convictions and the impactful work of her foundation in Nigeria – an essential element of her commitment to environmental and social issues.
Selection criteria:
Artists are selected on the basis of three criteria: artistic quality, environmental awareness and the desire to develop their practice to reduce its environmental impact.
Call for entries:
The Prize is open to all visual artists over the age of 18, French or foreign, residing in France and not having student status. The fact of already having an environmental approach is not a prerequisite.
This is not a call for projects, but a simple questionnaire to fill in (between 20 minutes and 1h30 is enough to answer).
Access the application questionnaire
View the terms and conditions
The Prize is supported by the French Ministry of Culture and ADEME, and sponsored by Maison Ruinart and Fondation LAccolade.
The Eco-Design Art Prize would like to thank its partners for distributing the call for entries: Artagon, Artistik rezo, the Comité Professionnel des Galeries d’Art, Révélations Emerige, Fisheye magazinz, the École des Arts Décoratifs, the Emerige Endowment Fund, Poush, and its partners the Palais de Tokyo and the Fondation LAccolade.
Thanks to the artist Otobong Nkanga for her visual In partitions, Scaffolding Series, 2018, Courtesy of the artist
Information and contact:
Sana Tekaïa, chief project Eco Design Art Prize
sana@artofchange21.com
ECO-DESIGN ART PRIZE, SECOND EDITION, 2024
In 2024, the Eco-Design Art Prize honored 12 laureates, chosen from among 356 candidates. The laureates, selected by a prestigious jury, were announced on April 2, 2024, at the Palais de Tokyo. This new edition is enriched by new experts, strengthened carbon footprint management, and the involvement of artists committed to an environmental initiative.
For the second year running, the Eco-Design Art Prize supports artists in reducing their environmental impact. The prize rewards 12 laureates with three days of tailor-made support at the Palais de Tokyo, with environmental, carbon and eco-design experts, as well as artists already well-advanced in the environmentally-consciousness of their practice. Each laureate also receives a 1,000 euro grant upon completion.
The prize is open to all visual artists living in France.
The coaches, whose number and scope of expertise have increased for this second edition, include specialists in art & environment, carbon analysis, eco-design, sustainable textile design, low tech, solar energy, Green IT, and much more. In addition, artists from the previous edition will share their own experiences and progress. Finally, Art of Change 21 and the Palais de Tokyo will also be sharing their expertise, including a behind-the-scenes of the museum’s sustainability practices.
Representing a real testing ground for the environmental transition of artistic practices, the prizewinners will be coached through all the various stages of their practice (choice of techniques and materials, production issues, exhibition process, modes of transport, etc.)
The laureates of the 2024 edition:
Assoukrou Aké
Amandine Arcelli
Alizée Armet
Victor Cord’homme
Lélia Demoisy
Julia Gault
Ittah Yoda
Alice Magne
Desire Moheb-Zandi
Ouazzani Carrier
Jonathan Potana
Adrien Vescovi
> See the Eco-Design Art Prize presentation
The Jury
For the second edition of the Eco-design Art Prize the jury included Julie Crenn (independent curator), Guillaume Désanges (President of the Palais de Tokyo), Yvannoé Kruger (curator, Director of Poush), Valérie Martin (Head of the Citizen Mobilisation and Media Department, ADEME), Arnaud Morand (independent curator, Head of Arts Afalula), Emmanuel Tibloux (Director of the National School of Decorative Arts), Lucia Pietroiusti (Director of Ecologies, Serpentine Galleries), Fabien Vallérian (Director of Art and Culture, Maison Ruinart), Marion Waller (Director of the Pavillon de l’Arsenal) and Alice Audouin (President of Art of Change 21).
The selection committee
A selection committee, chaired by Stefano Vendramin, Program Director at Art of Change 21, will be in charge of an initial shortlist of candidates. Its members are Jeremy Alonso (Guerlain Head of Sustainable Innovation), Léo Marin (Independent curator, art critic and director of Galerie Eric Mouchet), Emmanuelle Paillat (Carbon Expert), Juliette Soulez (Art critic, Art of Change 21 Team), Pauline Lisowski (Art critic, Art of Change 21 Team), Claire Vannaxay (Art of Change 21 Team) and Juliette Dessagne (Art of Change 21 Team).
The ceremony
The award ceremony was held on 2 April 2024 at the Palais de Tokyo.
The coaching
Art of Change 21 assembled a team comprised of experts, a pioneering guest artist in eco-design (Fabien Léaustic), and external contributors, who guided the laureates in understanding the issues and impacts related to their practice, developing a working methodology, and exploring ecological alternatives.
The creation of an eco-design methodology for artists is entrusted to Karbone Prod (Fanny Legros) in collaboration with Solinnen, an expert eco-design firm.
100% of the laureates from the first edition of the Prize declared their satisfaction with the coaching, and over 90% stated that it would evolve their practices.
The coaching will take place over three days, on April 24, May 16, and June 7 2024 at the Palais de Tokyo.
The contributors
The contributors who will accompany the winners of the second edition include:
Artists: Julian Charrière ; Jérémy Gobé ; Fabien Léaustic ; Théo Mercier
Experts: Cédric Carles – co-founder of Paléo-Energétique, the Solar Sound System, Atelier 21 and RegenBox; Fanny Legros – founding director of Karbone Prod specializing in eco-design in the arts; Emmanuelle Paillat – expert and pioneer in carbon accounting since 2007; Lucia Pietroiusti – Director of Ecologies, Serpentine Galleries
Art of Change 21: Alice Audouin, founder and chair
Palais de Tokyo: Mathieu Boncour – CSR and Communications Director ; Benjamin Mathia – Stage Manager
Partners and sponsors
This edition of the Eco-Design Art Prize is organized for the second time in partnership with the Palais de Tokyo.
The Prize is supported by the French Ministry of Culture and the French Agency for Ecological Transition (ADEME).
Its main partner is Ruinart, and its patron is Guerlain.
Thank you to Julian Charrière for his involvement in this Prize and for providing the visual (Julian Charrière, Towards No Earthly Pole, 2018. Courtesy of the artist).
Our distribution partners are helping to spread the call for applications.
ECO-DESIGN ART PRIZE, FIRST EDITION, 2023
Eva Jospin, Vincent Mauger, Raphal Fabre, Thomas Levy-Lasne, Angela Jimenez Duran, Pierre Gainard, Louisa Marajo, Agata Ingarden
In 2023, the Eco-design Art Prize rewarded 12 winners, chosen from 278 candidates.
100% of the winners of the first edition of the Prize declared themselves satisfied with the support they received, and over 90% stated that the support they received would help their practices evolve.
The winners of the 2023 edition
Pierre Clément
Raphaël Fabre
Pierre Gaignard
Agata Ingarden
Ángela Jiménez Durán
Eva Jospin
Ludivine Large-Bessette
Thomas LévyLasne
Louisa Marajo
Vincent Mauger
Théo Mercier
Manon Pretto
The 2023 edition included a prize consisting of two Life Cycle Analysis, won by artists Eva Jospin and Louisa Marajo.
The Jury
The Jury was made up of eight personalities from the worlds of contemporary art and sustainable development. They selected the 12 winners, including the two artists who benefited from a life-cycle analysis.
The ceremony
The ceremony was held on January 10 2023 at the Palais de Tokyo.
The coaching
Art of Change 21 put together a tailor-made team of experts, including a guest artist and eco-design pioneer (Fabien Léaustic), and external contributors, who helped the winners to understand the issues and impacts associated with their practice, to develop a working method and to find ecological alternatives.
The creation of an eco-design methodology for artists was entrusted to Karbone Prod (Fanny Legros) in collaboration with Solinnen, an expert in eco-design.
100% of the winners of the first edition of the prize said they were satisfied with the support they received, and over 90% stated that the coaching they received would help them evolve their practices.
The contributors
Art of Change 21
Alice Audouin, founding president, expert in sustainable development since 2001 and independent curator
Stefano Vendramin, program director and independent curator
Palais de Tokyo
Mathieu Boncour – CSR and Communications Director
Lisa Séantier – Exhibition Production Director
Benjamin Mathia – Stage Manager
The Palais de Tokyo’s support was accompanied by visits to current exhibitions from the perspective of eco-design and the Palais’s stage management.
Experts
Fanny Legros – founding director of Karbone Prod
Fabien Léaustic – guest artist, artist-engineer-researcher committed to eco-design for 10 years.
Cédric Carles – artist, designer and entrepreneur, co-founder of Paléo-Energétique, the Solar Sound System, Atelier 21 and RegenBox.
Aléxia Venot – designer, artist and biomaterials researcher.
Mathieu Delemme – expert in digital eco-design and Green IT.
Martin Lambert – head of the Art & Technology laboratory at Stéréolux.
Partners and sponsors
The first edition of the Eco-design Art Prize was organised in partnership with the Palais de Tokyo.
It was also supported by the French Ministry of Culture and the French Agency for Ecological Transition (ADEME).
Its main partner was Ruinart, and its patron was Guerlain.
The Eco-design Art Prize also won the Norsys Foundation Trophy in 2023.
Distribution partners
The distribution partners were involved in distributing the call for applications.
Photo credit: Say Who – Valentin Lecron
Alice Audouin
The bureau, The team
Alice Audouin
Chair and founder of Art of Change 21
Alice Audouin has been involved in sustainable development for 24 years, 20 of which focused on the link between contemporary art and the environment.
In 2004, she conceived and organized the first international symposium on the theme of “The artist as stakeholder” at UNESCO.
She then co-founded* and chaired the COAL association (the Art & Sustainable Development Coalition) from 2008 to 2014, playing an active role in creating and promoting the link between art and ecology in France.
She founded Art of Change 21 in 2014, at the eve of COP21.
As part of Art of Change 21, Alice Audouin continually enriches the link between art and the environment on an international scale and introduces contemporary art to major global events such as the Climate Conferences.
Alice Audouin has curated numerous thematic exhibitions on environmental issues: Crude Gratitude (2024, New York), Melting Point (2023, Dubai, with Art of Change 21), Novacène (2022, Lille, co-curated with Jean-Max Colard), Vita Extremis (2022, Brussels), Biocenosis (2021, Marseille, with Art of Change 21), Warmingland (2018, Paris, in collaboration with Marguerite Courtel), Post-carbon (2015, Paris, in collaboration with Vanessa Vancutsem)… and was guest curator of Art Paris art fair 2022 on the theme “Art and the Environment”.
A pioneer in sustainability, she co-initiated Novethic for the Caisse des Dépôts Group, where she was marketing and communications director (2000-2004), then became sustainable development director of Havas Media (2005-2013), participating in the development of responsible communications and the creation of the French College of sustainable development directors in 2007.
Since 2015, she has been a sustainable development consultant with her firm Alice Audouin Consulting, specializing in innovation and creativity as well as the transformation of the artistic and luxury sectors (clients LVMH, UBS, Afalula-RCU, Ruinart, Relais & Châteaux, Ecole des Arts décoratifs, Hermès…).
She has given over 100 speeches and conferences, including at the European Parliament, UNESCO, Centre Pompidou, Louvre Abu Dhabi, TEDx, French Senate…
She has published six books: “Biocenosis. Art & Biodiversity” (FR/EN) and “Novacène. Art & Climate Crisis” (FR/EN) in 2023 (Editions Lord Byron), “On entend dire que…l’écologie c’est fini” in 2013 (Editions Eyrolles / Les Echos), “La Communication Responsable”, with Anne Courtois and Agnès Rambaud, 2009, 2010 (Eyrolles), the novel “Ecolocash”, Anabet, 2007.
Alice Audouin has taught at university including as a former associate lecturer at the University of Cergy-Pontoise and former lecturer at the University of Paris I Panthéon Sorbonne (creation of the “Art and Sustainable Development” course) in the Plastic Arts and Art Sciences UFR.
She has a university education and holds two Master degrees in research (Philosophy and Economics, University of Paris I Panthéon-Sorbonne), a bachelor’s degree in Art History and a diploma in transdisciplinary studies from CETEC (University of Paris-Dauphine). More recently, she completed a masters in Arts & Vision (MAVI) directed by Yann Toma (Paris I Panthéon Sorbonne).
She is Knight of the National Order of Merit (Chevalier de l’Ordre National du Mérite) and Knight of the Order of Arts and Letters (Chevalière de l’Ordre des Arts et Lettres).
*with Lauranne Germond, Loïc Fel, Guillaume Robic and Agathe Utard
(and also Lauranne’s friend Clément Villemin and Loïc’s friend Olivier Delange)
The Team
Stefano Vendramin
The team
Stefano Vendramin
Stefano Vendramin is Director of Programmes at Art of Change 21. He is also Project Lead for COP Climate since 2021 as well as Impact Art News’ sub-editor and regular contributor.
Based between Paris and London, Vendramin is an independent curator and founder of STRATA, a platform dedicated to contemporary environmental art. He also organizes the conversation series “Creators Facing Climate Emergency” for the Fondation Thalie. Since studying Political Science at the University of Warwick (UK), he has worked at digital design agency Publicis. Sapient, the museum Bourse de Commerce – Pinault Collection, the art fair Asia Now, and multi-disciplinary arts center La Gaîté Lyrique.
The team
Eliza Morris
The team
Eliza Morris
Project Manager
Eliza specialises in art and ecology, with experience in both art galleries and museums including The Redfern Gallery (London) and Extraordinary Objects (Cambridge), art-ecology associations (COAL, Paris) and socio-environmental organisations (Groundwork UK). She has worked on projects that combine creativity with environmental protection, including curating exhibitions and developing public initiatives that explore the relationship between art and the environment.
At Art of Change 21, Eliza is Project Manager for COP30 and the Impact Art News media, and also contributes to the association’s development and communications.
Eliza is British-French and left England to live in France in 2023. A graduate of History of Art and Heritage Studies from the universities of Leeds and Cambridge, Eliza focused her studies on employing art historical research to understand the origins of the climate crisis, underlying her passion for the role of culture in inspiring and supporting the ecological transition.
The team
Pauline Lisowski
The team
Pauline Lisowski Editorial project manager Pauline Lisowski is a young art critic and independent curator who is interested in the relationship that artists have with nature, landscape and ecology. With a strong environmental conscience, she promotes the French art scene through exhibitions and artistic residencies in Paris and in outer regions. Member of the International Association of Art Critics (AICA) and the Association of Associated Curators (CEA), Pauline is a graduate of the Ecole Nationale Supérieure d’Art de Nancy, as well as of the University of Paris 1 Panthéon – Sorbonne (masters in Aesthetics and Cultural Projects in the Public Space). She is also an alumnus of the Blois landscape school.
Lisowski has been a member of the Impact Art News editorial team since 2020, where she supervises the latest exhibition news in France. Besides Impact Art News, she writes for Art Press, Inferno, Point Contemporain, Transverse, lacritique.org and others…
Amanda Mauro
The team
Amanda Mauro
Born and raised in Brazil, Amanda is a socio-environmental consultant and lawyer with experience in interdisciplinary human rights and environmental projects, professionally transiting between non-governmental organizations, public and private sectors.
Graduated in law and on her way to obtain a Masters degree in Sustainable Development, driven by a passion for sustainability and a deep-rooted belief in the transformative power of art and culture, Amanda has a keen interest in leveraging the arts as a catalyst for change, committed to discovering innovative approaches that foster environmental consciousness and cultural appreciation, bridging the gap between artistic expression and sustainability initiatives.
The team
Lucia Longhi
The team
Lucia Longhi
Independent curator, art critic and advisor.
Her critical writing and curatorial practice delve into the intersections of art, nature and technology. She works with galleries and institutions, curating exhibitions, providing advisory services and writing essays. She currently collaborates with Fondazione Benetton Imago Mundi contributing to the digital platform and curatorial research.
Since 2010 she contributes essays, interviews and reviews to international catalogs and magazines such as Artsy, Berlin Art Link, Artribune, Espoarte, Flash Art, Collezione da Tiffany, Digicult.
She curated a number of exhibitions in private galleries and wrote several critical texts. In 2022 Lucia Longhi founded The Language of The Sea, a program of art residencies taking place on a sailing boat across the Mediterranean Sea, with the aim to investigate the Med area under ecological, political and scientific perspectives.
She held classes, talks and seminars at: Accademia di Belle Arti di Palermo; CUBO Unipol Bologna; Università Ca’ Foscari; Fondazione Benetton Imago Mundi…
She holds a Master’s Degree in Art History at Ca’ Foscari University (Venice) with a thesis on Aesthetic Studies and she attended the NODE Center for Curatorial Studies (Berlin).
Zoé Brioude
Zoé Brioude
Zoé Brioude is a student researcher and environmental and feminist activist. Brioude is a graduate of the Master of Arts: theory/practice at PSL (Paris Sciences et Lettres) and is currently finishing her studies at the École Normale Supérieure de Paris in Arts. Her research focuses on the aesthetics of contemporary eco-conscious theater and on the implementation of the ecological transition in performing arts.
She is involved with set designers and visual artists who play a major role in the ecological transition of performing arts, thus creating a bridge between visual arts, theater and the environment.
Her commitment also extends to her own artistic practice: she has directed four student plays between 2017 and 2021, exploring feminist and ecological issues.
Zoé Brioude joined Art of Change 21 in 2022 as COP27 Project Manager and the upcoming Eco-Design Art Awards, she also contributes to Impact Art News media and the association’s communication.
The team